Breaking the glass chimney

There's a chauvinistic line about a woman's place being in the kitchen. The origins are obscured by time and evolution but it is still extant in India despite having a female Prime Minister and now a President. That begs the question: Why are there still such few women chefs or restaurateurs? The job is certainly tough, requiring physical and mental stamina, long unpredictable hours and considerable stress. Yet, women have broken the glass ceiling in every other field while their number as chefs and restaurateurs can be counted on the prongs of a fork.

In Mumbai, there was a solitary Camellia Punjabi of the Taj group who now runs six successful restaurants in London. Her success did nothing to break the glass chimney. The Taj has 112 executive chefs; only three are women. Delhi is fast showing the way. The game changer was Ritu Dalmia. Born in a strictly vegetarian Marwari home, she fell in love with Italy and Italian cooking, although her first venture was Vama, an Indian restaurant in London. She later opened Diva in Delhi in 2003 as a chef-owner. She has exceptional knowledge about wines and cheeses, apart from Italian food, and has inspired other women entrepreneurs in the capital.

Three of the most enterprising women who originally launched Thai Wok in Mehrauli were Natasha Choudhri, Payal Jauhar and Shilpa Gupta. Their restaurant ventures have been challenging for reasons unconnected to their passion and should have put them off the food business. Thai Wok shut because of the sealing drive. They moved to Goa and got involved with Congo, started by fashion designer Malini Ramani. Legal problems put an end to that and they moved to Mumbai and opened Bohemia, which also faced legal problems. Undeterred, they returned to Delhi and while Jauhar reopened Thai Wok as Thai High, Chaudhri and Gupta have launched Emperor's Kitchen, down the road, a trendy pan-Asian restaurant.

The trio have finally found their niche, now that Mehrauli's ultra-hip Style Mile is rocking again. Jauhar has introduced a new menu that is a winner, and Emperor's Kitchen lives up to its name with a regal ambience complemented with great Thai/ Chinese food. It's already become a hot party place thanks to its terraces and tented outdoor areas and there's even a trendy tea-time service. Not far from One Style Mile is Spice Market, presided over by the exquisitely named chef and co-owner Chiquita Gupta. She has impressive credentials having worked at the Four Seasons in London and the Hyatt Regency in Denver, along with her husband. Gupta already had a food background: her family owns the ever-popular Gulati's in Pandara Road but she was determined to start her own place, and Saket, where Spice Market is located, is a happening place for restaurants. Indian food with traditional dishes getting a contemporary twist is her signature but the name Spice involves yet another woman chef, Veena Arora, who presides over the Imperial's hugely popular Spice Route, one of the best restaurants in Delhi for south East Asian cuisine. Like the food they serve up, women are getting red hot when it comes to the food and restaurant business in Delhi. As the poet famously wrote, may their tribe increase.

Dilip Bobb Managing Editor, India Today

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